Emergency Preparedness with Children Prepared? Emergency preparedness with children can be a daunting task. Make it fun by including them in the process. After three evenings you ll be more prepared than you were and hopefully inspired for what you need to do next to prepare your family. If ye are prepared ye shall not fear. Doctrine & Covenants 38:30 Here are three activities that will help you prepare: Pack: Is your 72-hour kit up to date? This activity will help you figure out what you need to do to make it work for your current family situation. Home: Do your children know where to go in an emergency? This activity will help you review what to do in an emergency. Car: If you got stranded in your car do you have what you need?
Pack Pretend that someone has come to the door and informed you that you have 10 minutes to evacuate your home. Set a timer for 10 minutes. Have everyone gather what he or she would need for 3 days. When the timer goes off, get in the car and drive to a park or church parking lot. Review what you gathered and write down what you wished you had. Do you have any food or water? Do you have any blankets or anything for shelter? Do you have any money? Do you have important documents? Do you have a first-aid kit, toiletries, medicine, toilet paper, etc... Take time to put together the things you wished you had and take note of the things you wish you hadn t brought. Put your kits in an easily accessible location. ***It is important to remember not to make this activity stressful or scary! This is just a way to see what you have and what you might need. You may want to go get a treat afterwards. A great article your family may enjoy can be found in The Friend magazine: March 2016 edition, Emergency Evacuation.
Home Take an evening and review some of the following items with your children: Have your children draw a map of how they would exit the home in case of a fire or other emergency. Using the maps, practice exiting your home to those destinations. This could be a good time to test your fire and carbon monoxide alarms. As a family, practice walking to a family meeting place outside your home. (ie: mailbox, neighbor s porch, etc.) Create a list of numbers that your children may need in case of an emergency. Post the numbers in an easy to find location. Practice calling. Use a play phone to call 9-1-1. Think of other possible emergencies in your area and create a plan for what you would do and what you might need. If your children are a little older you may consider identifying responsibilities for each member of your household and plan to work together as a team. Practice. If you have children involved in Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Activity Days or Personal Progress these may pass off some requirements.
Car Create a car kit in one minute! Assign an activity for each member of your family. Modify the list to meet the needs of your family! Set a timer for one minute (or more time if you d like). Once the timer starts everyone has one minute to complete his or her task. Gather all the materials and place in the car. You may want to have a container or bag ready to place everything in before you start. Get a blanket for the car. Get a flashlight for the car. Put together a bag of snacks for the family (non-perishable). Get a bag of crayons, coloring books, etc. Get 3 water bottles for each member of your family. Put together a bag of cash. $5, $1 and coins are best. Get a first-aid kit for the car. Get matches, candle or flare. Get a toy or book that you like and can keep in the car. Get a bag of extra diapers and baby wipes. Get pairs of gloves (disposable or other). Get 3 rolls of toilet paper and place in zip-lock bag.
A Few More Ideas Here are a few resources you may find helpful as you continue to prepare your family: Family Home Evening Resource Book This can be found online at lds.org. There are many lessons that may be helpful located under Family Activities, such as Emergency Supplies, Emergency Telephone Numbers, Earthquake Preparation and Making a Survival Kit. www.ready.gov/kids This website has some emergency supplies lists and other activities your children may enjoy. Baby Bag Consider packing a bag with multiple sizes of diapers, infant formula, baby food, baby clothing in varying sizes so that you don t have to change your kit so often with a growing infant. As your baby grows out of clothing and diapers put a few into the bag to prepare for future babies. Rotation & Review As you occasionally use the items in your car kit and as your children grow it becomes necessary to rotate and review what you have in your 72-hour kits and car kit. It may be helpful to use General Conference time (April and October) as a reminder to quickly review what you have and update as needed. Emotional Health Be prepared to help children if they experience an emergency. It can be helpful for them to process it through talking about it when they are ready, drawing pictures or acting it out. Returning to normal routines as soon as possible is also helpful, such as scripture study, Family Home Evening, bedtime, etc... Time spent together as a family can be especially important at this time, even though it can be tricky to do.
Car Kit List The following list was prepared by a young mother who was stranded in her car for nine hours with four little ones: 1. Water 2. Portable toilet 3. Toilet paper 4. Extra diapers and wipes (make sure you update these as the kids grow) 5. Tampons, pads (if applicable) 6. Cash (ones and fives), coins 7. Change of clothing, underwear and socks for each member of the family (again, remember to update as they grow) 8. Flashlight 9. First aid kit, matches, hand warmers 10. Snacks (update these as well every six months) 11. Crayons, coloring books, books, small toys, dvd's 12. Cell phone charger 13. If you have a baby, some type of baby carrier (Baby Bjorn) 14. Jumper cables 15. Blankets and/or a sleeping bag, emergency blankets 16. Small shovel 17. Towel 18. KEEP YOUR GAS TANK ABOVE HALF :) 19. Pray 20. Help others if you can once you have your situation under control. Pray for Inspiration As you prayerfully seek to prepare your family you will be guided to know what else you should do. Front page border by cliparts.co